In January, a sheriff’s investigator said a Howell resident driving an SUV at “an excessive rate of speed” lost control and crashed around 9:50 a.m. Dec. 8 west of the Fowlerville exit and near Wallace Road at the Livingston-Ingham county line.

Snow had blanketed the area and then froze solid, creating treacherous traveling conditions.

The SUV crash blocked both lanes of westbound I-96, impeding other vehicles, some of which also were “traveling faster than conditions allowed,” the investigator added.

In all, 53 vehicles, including cars, trucks and semis, jackknifed or crashed. Some motorists also drove off the roadway.

Three people died in the crash: Vitalii Stelmakh, a 28-year-old semi driver from Hollywood, Florida, and a married couple from Ann Arbor, Homer Leon Tew, 69, and Theresa O’Connor Tew, 62.

More than 30 motorists who not injured were bused to the Fowlerville Police Department.

Murphy called the pileup a “significant incident” that tested Livingston County’s public safety response. The crash closed I-96 for about 12 hours.

“It was an outstanding show of cooperation between all of the public safety services as well as private industry that we were able to handle that scene as efficiently as we did,” the sheriff said.